Revisiting Niagara, a Trip We’ll Never Forget (2014)

I recently discovered the full set of image files from our 2014 Niagara Falls journey. These pictures brought back so many memories. For background, this trip was completely spontaneous and planned only days ahead of our departure date. We both had a week of vacation time scheduled, but we couldn’t decide where to go or what to do. Time was running out, and we had to make a decision. Almost in unison, we both declared, ‘Niagara.’ Good decision. Full disclosure, we did ALL the touristy things. No touristy stone left unturned here. We stayed on the Canadian side, which was completely amazing. Being in Canada gave us easy access to the wineries at Niagara on the Lake, the Canadian tourist attractions, and we even took a quick drive to Toronto on the Queen Elizabeth Way. Grab a glass of your favorite ice wine, and follow along in the captions below as we revisit one of our best adventures.

View from the American side. Maid of the Mist seen in the center.

View of the American Falls, taken aboard the Maid of the Mist.

Shot from a Canadian vantage point. I think it’s outside the visitor center, but my memory isn’t clear on that.

We took the cave tour on the Canadian side of things. It ends at this overlook next to the falls, where you certainly will get wet.

Another view from the cave tour. Maid of the Mist getting misty.

View from the Hornblower boarding point. The Hornblower is Canada’s answer to Maid of the Mist. Same falls, same river, same idea…somehow better?

Looking north from the rear of the Hornblower (the stern, I suppose). A group of colonials can be seen aboard the Maid of the Mist passing under Rainbow Bridge.

Maid of the Mist passing by American Falls.

A beautiful rainbow formed out of the river mist.

Rainy days make great days for winery tours. We picked three at Niagara on the Lake, a short drive from Niagara Falls. The first stop was Inniskillin, which is widely known for its ice wine.

One of the many vineyard rows at Inniskillin.

No clue what kind of grapes are photographed!

The next winery we visited was Trius. I don’t remember much about this one, and I don’t think we stayed here very long. It’s been 10 years, but I vividly remember the other two wineries we visited on this day…so there.

A stack of wine barrels at Trius. Once they pass their useful lives, I hear from the locals that wine barrels make great vessels to ride over the falls.

Oh, baby, here we go! Jackson-Triggs. We still talk about this place and remember it fondly. They had a sparkling chardonnay that was incredible. Unfortunately, we have not been able to source it in America.

A vineyard row of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.

Jackson-Triggs had an amazing lunch menu back in June 2014. I can’t speak for it today, but it was a great place for a lunch break on the winery tour.

I believe it would be considered unique for winery food, but Jackson-Triggs had a sushi menu. Gorgeous food, and delicious.

We took the full tour at Jackson-Triggs to learn all about the winemaking process.

Our guide offering the group a tasting at the end of the tour.

The expansive vineyard at Jackson-Triggs is impressive!

On our final day of exploring, we took the tram over Niagara Whirlpool. Niagara Whirlpool is a natural whirlpool formed downstream of Niagara Falls.

Niagara Whirlpool is formed within a sharp bend in the river. The views here of Niagara Gorge are stunning.

Riverside views at the bottom of Niagara Gorge. This view is looking upstream toward Niagara Falls.

The next stop was the Niagara Butterfly Conservatory.

After spending some time with the butterflies, we headed to McFarland House for lunch.

The McFarland House Tea Room is a great spot to recharge with a traditional afternoon tea experience.

Mrs. Lumiere’s sandwich in the gorgeous afternoon sunlight. The Tea Room is set within a glass-enclosed conservatory. Highly recommended.

Our last stop of the day was Old Fort Erie, which served as a British supply depot in the War of 1812.

Sunrise views from our room on departure day. We are looking upstream toward Buffalo, NY.

Another view from our room — this time looking downstream.

And that’s the end of our great Niagara adventure. We hope you enjoyed following along. I’m not sure we could ever recreate this trip. It was spontaneous and unscripted — a true classic with a lifetime of fun memories.